Timmermans softens anti-meat and chemo ban in final version of F2F

The final Green Deal plans of EU Commissioners Frans Timmermans and Stella Kyriakides for the 'farm-to-fork strategy' and biodiversity strategy are less anti-meat than earlier versions of the plans presented on Wednesday indicated.

An earlier draft version of that strategy, seen by EURACTIV.com, stated that the EU wanted to stop ‘stimulating production or consumption of meat’, but this was removed from the final version. Furthermore, a reference to encouraging ‘less meat’ was softened to ‘less red and processed meat’.

In addition, the previously advocated ‘ban on pesticides in agriculture’ was ultimately weakened. The final version now talks about ‘chemical pesticides’, ‘crop protection agents’, and ‘fertilization’. The use of these chemical agents is still to be ‘halved’, but for ‘growth promoters’ and ‘fertilization’ it only states that ‘usage should be reduced’.

However, the Green Deal strategy still includes a commitment to “help reduce the environmental and climate impact of animal production.” The European Commission also still wants a quarter of agricultural land to be used for organic farming. In the Netherlands, currently about four percent of the total agricultural area is organic.

In an initial reaction, the European farmers’ association COPA-COGECA emphasized that they support a “balanced diet” in which consumption of healthy food from both animal and plant sources is essential. The Dutch agricultural umbrella organization LTO says it is crucial that farmers and growers receive compensation for their extra efforts and investments.

In this regard, LTO Noord chairman Bruins sees some positives in the farm-to-fork strategy applying to the entire EU. ‘What is important for us is that a level playing field is created regarding legislation on sustainability. There are indeed opportunities here.’

The fact that there is still no financial underpinning of Timmermans’ plans is called a sign of weakness and a shortcoming mainly in agricultural responses. It has earlier been noted that new funds are needed for his new plans in addition to the amounts in the CAP agricultural budget. Others say that the broad Climate policy replaces the narrow agricultural policy.

The farmers’ organizations demand a solid agricultural budget from the EU under the proposed transition. Next week the multiannual budget will be presented in Brussels. The negotiations over available amounts are overshadowed by the money needed for the coronavirus crisis. The final word on that has yet to be said.